sick of homer- better place to start?

[Filius Volcani]

So I am not enjoying reading Homer. i hate poetry and i especially hate how he ignores the rules whenever it suites him. I am always dealing with words whose endings dont match any of the tables. and i just have to shrug and move on accepting on faith what Perseus says it is without learning anything. (προσέφη from line 216 is a great example (wait is that root aorist? perseus said it was imperfect))
is there a more straight and direct book for a beginner? herodotus maybe or Daphnis & Chloe?
thanks

here was the straw that broke this camel's back, lines 215 216 and 217:
τὴν δ᾽ ἀπαμειβόμενος προσέφη πόδας ὠκὺς Ἀχιλλεύς:
‘χρὴ μὲν σφωΐτερόν γε θεὰ ἔπος εἰρύσσασθαι
a necessity [it is] to preserve yalls' word goddess
καὶ μάλα περ θυμῷ κεχολωμένον: ὧς γὰρ ἄμεινον:
and very very angered in the heart:...

Apparently 217 gets translated as "...no matter how angry he may be at heart"
thats just too much of a stretch for me to accept.

 

[Glabrigausapes]

I am always dealing with words whose endings dont match any of the tables.

Yes, it's frustrating; everyone who's read Homer has been there. But the tables you're referring to were probably not designed with Homer in mind.

προσέφη from line 216 is a great example (wait is that root aorist?

You were right! It is in fact a root aorist. Perseus is very useful, but not infallible.

thats just too much of a stretch for me to accept.

It helps to acquaint yourself with these obnoxious particles that appear in every single line. Here I think you've missed that περ, while originally an emphatic particle much like γε, is used (often in conjunction with a participle, as here) to denote 'concession', hence the translation. Also, the particle καί here is best translated 'even'. Let's rearrange:

χρὴ/need (is that) καὶ/even μάλα/much περ/(although) θυμῷ/in heart κεχολωμένον/angered εἰρύσσασθαι/preserve
Need (is that) even very (although) in heart him who is angry to preserve

"It behooves a man, though he be very wroth in his heart, to preserve..."

I really don't know what direction to point you in, but I can advise that you be patient, stand back & appreciate how much you've learned even to be capable of this much. This stuff is not child's play.

 

[Gryllus Minor]

Perseus has maybe a 96% accuracy rate, so one has to be careful. If you can get a hold of Autenrieth, it includes a summary of Homeric forms and grammar for easy reference. Otherwise, the key to success is perseverance...

https://tinyurl.com/y64rgjol

 

[Big Horn]

Xenophon is a good author for both the tyro or the more advanced. Check the various editions of The Anabasis.